The Viral Factory, Skype and middle-of-nowhere Rob

Over the years, one poignant question has troubled the minds of philosophers the world over, a question that tears at the very fabric of existence and perception.

If a phone rings in the forest, will anybody answer it?

Thanks to the folks at The Viral Factory in London, we now know the answer to be “Yes, Rob will answer it.”

In a very cool stunt promoting Skype‘s comparatively low charges for calling landlines, they’ve sent 27-year-old Rob Cavazos, a rugged world traveller who’s fluent English, German and Spanish to camp out in front of the most remote telephone The Viral Factory could find… which happened to be in the middle of the wilderness in southern Spain. Once there, Rob set up camp, and the crew set up cameras. You see, Rob’s goal is to stay at that phone for as many days as possible, and it’s the public’s job to give him somebody to talk to.

People are encouraged to visit www.phoneboxexperiment.com where they can watch Rob in real-time live streaming video. The phone number for that lonely phone booth (+34 951 055 675) is listed on the site, and clicking will open up Skype on your computer, allowing you to give Rob a call and see how things are going. You can even ask Rob to part with many of the belongings he’s brought along with him.

You do have to pay for the call, but the cost is ridiculously cheap — just a fraction over two cents a minute — which sure beats calling on my cellphone.

I do have to change my cellphone plan…